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Infrastructure project security and safety managementJohn Constance

MSc in Project Management, University of Liverpool

IntroductionSecurity and safety management are the two most important aspects of infrastructureproject implementation as without security infrastructure management informationsystems or infrastructure construction cannot be assured invulnerability and smoothoperations respectively; and without safety risks to the environment and work safetycannot be managed effectively. This paper discusses three safety or securityfundamentals that is generally applicable when planning a diversity of infrastructureprojects, and explains the utmost key lessons learned from these general applicationsthat could reduce insecurity and unsafe conditions on future projects.Element #1 Decision Support Tool (DST)This element, according to Sorvari & Seppala (2010) is a multi-criteria decision approachthat practically drives the time and money elements in making risk managementdecisions of contaminated sites which can also be applied to a variety of other sites byproviding a tool that considers contamination of any type, magnitude, and scale, the useof the land, site and surrounding environmental conditions, and the aspects of socio-cultural issues. This element is also useful in that every infrastructure project must pre-determine before, during and after construction operations all the risks factors that could

jeopardize infrastructure project operations and also lead the way to applying systematicsafety risk management that is involved in wide-ranging construction activities asindicated by Sun et al. (2008).

Element #2 Safety Risk Assessment ModelThis element developed by Sun et al (2008) for the Beijing Olympics can also be appliedto a variety of other infrastructure projects. The model is a site safety risk assessmenttool applied in the management of workers safety risk factors inherently common inconstruction site operations. The model based on critical safety risk factors creates aproject risk register using Saaty (2000) AHP or analytic hierarchy process thatestablishes an evaluation hierarchy, questionnaire for attributes measuring, and weightcalculation associated with each attributes. The model is very useful and defines andcriteria safe construction and safety objective and identify and prioritize safety risks

through a matrix on qualitative risk analysis and risk register, and develops a safety riskassessment model that evaluates construction site risks framework and systematicmanagement tool for common safety risks before, during and after construction siteoperations.

Element #3 Complementary GIS Enterprise frameworkThis element, suggested by Pradhan, Laefer & Rasdorf (2007) provides an effectivemeans to systematic management afore, throughout, and following a disaster. The

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authors recommended tool, which can be applied to every community asset, considermanaging disaster through the phases of identification, prediction, preparation,mitigation, response, and recovery by adapting the distribution of computing resources,data sharing, and upgrading. This model architecture shows the constructability of sucha system, which according to the authors enables governments to be prepared fordisasters even before it occurs, when it occurs and after it occurs by integrating the

application of a vigorous, well-organized, and safe program information systemarchitecture.

Lessons LearnedThe lessons learned from the three elements selected above are that they provide arobust approach to risk management before construction (environmental and socio-cultural issues), during construction (workers safety) and after construction (disastermanagement). The application of the three elements in infrastructure projectmanagement provides a before, during and after risk management scenario that candefinitely minimize environmental and workers and community security and safety onfuture infrastructure projects.

Conclusion

Infrastructure project is critical to the environment and community therefore requiring arobust and efficient security and safety management system that not only assures safeconstruction and environment by provides a systematic response to disaster before itoccurs, during it occurrence and after the disaster have occurred. One strategic wayproject managers can manage infrastructure project security and safety is by applyingthe right planning models that can identify security threats, identify safety threats and

overall manage security and safety before, during and after construction operations andminimise the impact on projects.

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References

Pradhan A., Laefer D. and Rasdorf W. (2007) Infrastructure management information systemframework requirements for disasters, Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering 21 (2) pp. 90-101

Saaty, T. L. (2000) Fundamentals of decision making and priority theory with the analytichierarchy process, RWS Publications, Pittsburgh

Sorvari, J. and Seppala, J. (2010) A decision support tool to prioritize risk management options

for contaminated sites, Science of the Total Environment, 408 (8) March, pp. 1786-1799

Sun, Y., Fang, D., Wang, S., Dai, M., and Lv, X. (2008) Safety risk identification and assessmentfor Beijing Olympic venues construction, Journal of Management in Engineering, 24 (1), pp.4047